Rules & Regulations

St. John’s Cemetery Rules & Regulations

1. The Cemetery is opened for burials from year round, weather permitting. During the period between December 1st and March 30th arrangements will be made by the funeral director to have the casket kept in a receiving vault. Weather permitting, after April 1st, the funeral director will arrange for the grave opening, and a priest will conduct a graveside service if requested.
2. The cemetery is opened from dawn till dusk for visiting purposes. Anyone found in the Cemetery after dark will be trespassing, and appropriate action will be taken. Gathering in large groups, playing loud music, drinking alcoholic beverages and other activities no consonant with respect for a place of Christian burial are forbidden.
3. No plant or shrubbery of any type is allowed to be planted permanently on the grave. Plants or flowers are to be placed in an urn or metal container along side of the headstone, nor buried in the ground in front of the stone or in the middle of the plot. Glass containers constitute a hazard to those mowing the grass and are forbidden. Artificial flowers are not allowed unless securely placed with approved containers.
4. All flowers should be removed before November 1st so that the Cemetery is tidy before the coming of winter’s snow. Wreaths, however, are allowed as winter decorations on the grave.
5. The Cemetery is not and cannot be insured against damage to monuments and urns. If the damage was due to vandalism or the carelessness of a cemetery visitor, we do not accept the responsibility. (Sometimes the loss may be recouped from a homeowner’s policy.) However, if the damage was caused by our own cemetery workers, we will be responsible for correcting it.
6. The Cemetery requires that the casket be encased in an outer interment receptacle, i.e., a steel or concrete vault.
7. All headstones and monuments must be placed at the head of the grave in such a fashion that a person, standing on the grave, can read the inscription on the stone. Only one marker per person in allowed, with the exception of veterans markers, which should be attached to the headstone or placed flush with the ground at the head end of the grave. No foot markers or grave posts are allowed at any time.
8. St. John’s Cemetery is a Catholic cemetery. In order to maintain this identity under state law, graves can be used only for the burial of Roman Catholics. The only exception to this rule is a non-Catholic spouse or close family members (i.e., mother, father, sister or brother) of a Catholic with a plot in the Cemetery.
9. All burials are to follow the guidelines of the Diocese of Rochester. A copy may be obtained from the Church office upon request.

St. John’s Mausoleum Rules & Regulations

1. No entombment/Interment shall be permitted until the full purchase price of the crypt(s) niche(s) shall have been paid.  Upon full payment, seller shall deliver to buyer a certificate evidencing said entombment rights to the buyers and his heirs in perpetuity.  The purchase price aforesaid includes permanent maintenance in accordance to New York State Laws.
2. Buyer agrees and hereby represents that entombment rights purchased here under are for entombment or interment purpose only and not for speculation or investment.
3. Crypts or Niches may be used for the entombment of human remains only. Only one entombment or interment may be made for each single crypt or niche.
4. Memorial inscription of crypt or niche fronts must conform uniformly with the rules set out by the Cemetery. Each inscription must be handled by the Cemetery and is limited to the legal name, along with nickname, if applicable, year of birth and year of death for each person whose crypt space is reached through the aperture covered by the crypt/niche front.
5. All artificial flowers must be put into Cemetery approved containers in the area specified for the crypts/niches.
6. NO object of any kind, floral or decorative, may be placed on the crypt or niche front at any time. Any such objects shall be removed and disposed of.
7. The Cemetery shall not be liable for damage as a result of an act of God or malicious mischief or for any other occurrence where the Cemetery has exercised reasonable care.
8. All series about the crypt or niche or mausoleum requiring labor shall be performed by the Cemetery, or its authorized agents.
9. Ownership of a St. John’s Crypt or Niche comprised the right to perpetual use of the burial right in each space conveyed and the right of inscription acceptable to St. John’s. Title to the St. John Mausoleum building all of their parts and appurtenances remains in perpetuity with the cemetery.
10. The maximum size case which can be accommodated in a mausoleum crypt is 7’3” long by 2’6” wide by 2’1” high. The maximum size case which can be accommodated in a mausoleum niche is ________
11. The right of entombment/interment is NOT transferable, except with the prior written consent of the Cemetery. Determination of successors and assigns shall be made by the Cemetery in accordance with the Cemetery Rules and Regulations at present, or hereafter to be established by said St. John’s Cemetery, and Section 8 of the New York Religious Corporations law.
12. The general procedure for religious services at the time of entombment is for the service to be held in the front of the crypt/niche building. After the service, the family will have a brief, private moment of prayer and reflection before they leave. After the family has left, the funeral director, along with the Cemetery personnel, will make the entombment/internment.   The Cemetery Management does not permit witnesses, other than the funeral director, to be present for this procedure.  The Cemetery shall allow only two floral pieces to be placed on the floor of the building at the time of an entombment/interment service.